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Missed My P-Bass Window
- Thread starter nkjanssen
- Start date
I feel zero anxiety about this. I’m just talking about my recent experience where a planned/researched bass purchase kind of got derailed, and now I’m rethinking my approach. Just casually talking bass. On Talk Bass.BOOG said: “Darn that indecisiveness”
So why all the angst?
Oh, for sure. I actually thought the Am Pro II pickups sounded pretty good until I put them head-to-head against some other basses with different pickups. But strings may have been different ages, different pickups heights, etc. Tough to perfectly compare. I’d live with them a while before replacing if I do get an Am Pro II.
I’m in the exact same situation in regards to the Am Pro II : I really really love everything things on this bass but the stock pickups never impressed me on all the ones I tried. If I was to buy one, I would change the pickups immediately.
I then decided to build my basses myself with the parts I want and it works perfectly for me every time.
Another option could be to find a good brand new MIM Fender bass, make your own quality control on it and then replace the pickups with your favorites. (Mine are the Fender Pure Vintage 63 !)
Doing so, you will have a very good bass, the sound you want and save money. The only possible downside is that the neck won’t be reinforced with graphite bars but it might sound more lively on the other hand.
I then decided to build my basses myself with the parts I want and it works perfectly for me every time.
Another option could be to find a good brand new MIM Fender bass, make your own quality control on it and then replace the pickups with your favorites. (Mine are the Fender Pure Vintage 63 !)
Doing so, you will have a very good bass, the sound you want and save money. The only possible downside is that the neck won’t be reinforced with graphite bars but it might sound more lively on the other hand.
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You're in a pickle with this one it seems.
Using a shipping service to forward the item to you or having someone here buy it and ship to you would be expensive, and you might run into import duties that hike the cost up.
Assembling a bass from similar parts is always going to be more expensive.
The best choices are to try finding a used one or just to pay the higher price, IMO. It's always better to hold out for exactly what you want, whether that is paying a bit more or waiting for a used one. Am Pros are pretty common basses
Using a shipping service to forward the item to you or having someone here buy it and ship to you would be expensive, and you might run into import duties that hike the cost up.
Assembling a bass from similar parts is always going to be more expensive.
The best choices are to try finding a used one or just to pay the higher price, IMO. It's always better to hold out for exactly what you want, whether that is paying a bit more or waiting for a used one. Am Pros are pretty common basses
yeah, I’m pretty attached to my #1 as well.I might try some string experimentation, too. My p-bass was my best tool for really understanding and learning what all of the different types and brands of strings could/couldn’t do.
My first bass (still my #1) got dressed up with a set of GZR’s and the world was right as rain
Here is a thought. If the shop can't or won't sell for the original price. See what he will do with perks, like free strings, a new strap, etc.
As to price increases and using your logic, I should never buy another bass because of price increases. My first P cost about $250. (well, okay it was 1967)
People here missing the point. The P bass is the simplest, dirtiest, crappiest (in a good way) bass on the planet and there are a ton of variations nowdays to choose from. Ive had em all and now play a superb CV70. And in 45 years its my first maple neck too. Hated maple for ever but on this bass with the fat ole 70's profile it just works.
...and the local shops bitch and moan about how the net is putting them out of business...
I don’t think anyone is missing the point at all. Every model has a different neck and the Am Pro II necks are *superb*.
Not to hijack your post, but I'm looking at a bit of a window, myself, and wonder if anyone has thoughts.
After selling off my mid-late 70s P-bass at the end of the 90s I'm now finding myself wanting a passive bass again. Mine was allegedly a 'studio model' with the 1.75" nut and weighed around 375lb. Black/Black/Maple/Maple with a Badass II bridge and the Seymours with the dip switch EQ. There's a franken-P on Reverb with a Warmouth body, 80s reissue 57 neck (1.625" nut), my old bridge and pickup, plus a D-tuner that's hitting me right in the nostalgia.
But the asking is just a shade less than a used MIJ '57 reissue that's actually a Fender, or a more modern used American Pro. Yeah, the pickup is likely hard to find, but from my perspective it's a used Warmouth body ($300ish?), and a used neck ($350?) with a used Badass ($70?) and a set of Hipshots ($150ish). Thinking I'll sit by this window for a while and see what my bonus looks like this year, but I'm also considering a loaded Duff McKagan body for $550 and a Jazz-to-P neck from Sweetwater that would likely be a more useful bass in the end.
After selling off my mid-late 70s P-bass at the end of the 90s I'm now finding myself wanting a passive bass again. Mine was allegedly a 'studio model' with the 1.75" nut and weighed around 375lb. Black/Black/Maple/Maple with a Badass II bridge and the Seymours with the dip switch EQ. There's a franken-P on Reverb with a Warmouth body, 80s reissue 57 neck (1.625" nut), my old bridge and pickup, plus a D-tuner that's hitting me right in the nostalgia.
But the asking is just a shade less than a used MIJ '57 reissue that's actually a Fender, or a more modern used American Pro. Yeah, the pickup is likely hard to find, but from my perspective it's a used Warmouth body ($300ish?), and a used neck ($350?) with a used Badass ($70?) and a set of Hipshots ($150ish). Thinking I'll sit by this window for a while and see what my bonus looks like this year, but I'm also considering a loaded Duff McKagan body for $550 and a Jazz-to-P neck from Sweetwater that would likely be a more useful bass in the end.
Epilogue…
Went back to my local shop yesterday to give it another shot. Found out the price of the Am Pro II Precisions had actually been increased again by another $50!! Ugh!! Anyway, got the ear of a more sympathetic employee who went and talked to the manager. They agreed to sell me the bass I wanted for the original (two weeks ago) price. Went with olympic white. Has a very dark board. Looks great. Feels amazing. Sounds, actually, pretty damn good. I’m super happy. They sold a bass. Everyone’s a winner!
Went back to my local shop yesterday to give it another shot. Found out the price of the Am Pro II Precisions had actually been increased again by another $50!! Ugh!! Anyway, got the ear of a more sympathetic employee who went and talked to the manager. They agreed to sell me the bass I wanted for the original (two weeks ago) price. Went with olympic white. Has a very dark board. Looks great. Feels amazing. Sounds, actually, pretty damn good. I’m super happy. They sold a bass. Everyone’s a winner!
